**/***** (2/5)
As opposed to Michael Connely's ECHO PARK ** (the last murder mystery I read), Tami Hoag's DUST TO DUST exhibits the writing of a woman's human touch. Hoag fleshes out her protagonists' personal lives (Kovac and Liska), the history and lives of those characters involved with the crimes all interconnect (Savard, Wyatt, Andy & Mike Fallon, Thorne), and an element of love factors into the crimes. Hoag demonstrates a knack for setting the scene in Minnesota surpassing Connelly's ECHO PARK and her prose also seems to follow at a higher level. Although Hoag seems comfortable writing 44 year-old Detective Sam Kovac and he bears many similarities to Connelly's Harry Bosch (married to the job, old, lonely, bulldog-like after a mystery), I liked Connelly's Bosch much better. Connelly spares us the repeated reminders of his protagonist's loneliness -- quit whining and do something about it already if you want someone in your life, Kovac! I can't say I enjoyed DUST TO DUST as the human element here stunts the mystery and suspense (Connely built the suspense and mystery much better). With the exception of bailing out Kovac in near-death situations more than once, Liska's character and angle in this book with the Curtis case seemed extraneous. Kovac's partner 32 year-old single mom Nikki "Tinks" Liska resembled the token kick-butt chick archetype who simply doesn't need anyone's help like Kovac needs her constant help. Liska even disposes of an iron-pumped 200-pound-plus baddie at the end mostly by herself. The final chapter shifts between Kovac and Liska in short passages and it was a little melodramatic, trying to inappropriately add tension and action to a book mostly about tortured characters disbelievingly all interconnected by circumstance and tragedy. The book never really grips until we read a tortured Amanda Savard's perspective more than 120 pages into this 354-page hardcover. And then of course we don't really hear much from Savard afterwards as the book prepares for a very sad denouement. Although I have to admire Hoag for the markedly sad ending, I don't have to like it. The lack of an engaging suspense and mystery confounds my problems with the novel.
Hoag lingers on her characters' loneliness quite a bit, and I found it tiring. A humor which clearly aims to shroud hidden vulnerabilities -- especially tough-chick humor from Liska -- didn't help the reading experience. Thirty-two year-old single mom Nikki Liska obviously finds herself still attracted to her cheating ex-husband. Despite her tough-chick demeanor, ASHES TO ASHES repeatedly mentions Liska's vulnerability and of course she dons an insensate exterior around her gorgeous ex-husband Speed to discourage him. The book reminds us again and again that Liska's 44 year-old partner Sam Kovac is lonely, only having an estranged daughter to show for his two failed marriages. An older, retired cop's desolate solitude (Mike Fallon) magnifies Kovac's loneliness and he sees himself in the bitter, lonely Mike Fallon down the line: alone at home, sitting in front of a tv and eating a tv dinner. Kovac wallows in self-pity and loneliness quite a bit, even after his involvement with Savard. Okay we get it, they're lonely, even though both Liska and Kovac are more than capable of doing something about their lonely condition, they mope around about it tirelessly. Even though Hiaasen's Mick Stranahan in SKIN TIGHT (**) was divorced 5 times, he's content living out in a stilt house off the coasts of South Florida by himself. That was much more believable than Sam Kovac's feminine moping around.
The Premise, possible SPOILERS.
The suspense behind DUST TO DUST's murder mystery actually overlaps four different cases. You have the apparent suicide hanging of police cop Andy Fallon, part of the notorious Internal Affairs division. Then there's the subsequent suicide of his decrepit father, retired cop Mike Fallon. Two cases from the past also come into play: the Thorne and Curtis murders, two cases Andy Fallon was investigating. There's quite a few balls in the air, and Hoag contrives to weave them all together. All of it stems from an element of love and tragedy from the Thorne murder years ago which turns Captain Ace Wyatt into a hero and ruins Mike Fallon's police career. Similar to Connelly's ECHO PARK, Kovac and Liska stage a scene to acquire a taped confession twice in DUST TO DUST. Also like ECHO PARK, killers will be killers and things never go according to plan. As I mentioned before, Liska's investigation into the Curtis murder seemed terribly extraneous. I suppose we need to have a girl kicking some butt?
Anyhow, Hoag fails to build the suspense and I lost my interest numerous times during the novel (beginning 100 pages and the final 250 pages or so). The constant reminders of Kovac's loneliness crowned by the sad ending really clinched my overall dissatisfaction with the novel. I really didn't care who was the killer 100 pages into the novel!
Showing posts with label suspense/mystery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label suspense/mystery. Show all posts
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Friday, November 16, 2007
Echo Park, by Michael Connelly [2]
**/*****
Michael Connelly's 2006 mystery ECHO PARK perpetuates many of the genre's themes though it still manages to intrigue and keep readers in suspense. You know a mystery novel will throw many curve balls at you, and you know oftentimes, the culprit is the last person you'd expect. In spite of all this, ECHO PARK still imparts interesting suspense. Michael Connelly writes a series of mystery novels on Police Detective Harry Bosch, and this is my first Connelly novel. It isn't bad, and very readable. Not a page-turner by any means, slow and steady best describes the pacing of this novel. The prose is average and the settings of Los Angeles and Echo Park fairly tame, relying on the names of real streets, neighborhoods and establishments to build the scene. The suspense keeps you interested but it isn't on-the-edge-of-your-seat kind of suspense. Like most mystery novels, I found the ending protracted and anticlimactic. There's a lot of politics in the novel as the book takes place during the fall election season. Two spots up for election directly affect our protagonist Harry: the position of District Attorney and a city council seat. Much of the politics was good as it posed and postured intriguing scenarios, making the read far from cut-and-dry. I liked that the villain here isn't all bad but definitely demented. Our villain Reynard Waits accurately characterizes Harry Bosch as an "eye-for-an-eye guy." Our protagonist Harry exhibits a cold, ruthless streak and I liked that as well.
The Premise.
In 1993, Detective Harry Bosch investigates the disappearance of Marie Gesto. After discovering her car in the exterior garage of High Tower apartments where many fledgling actors live, Harry has a bad feeling about the case. They find neatly folded clothes and groceries in her Honda Accord inside the garage, but they're never able to find the body or nail down any suspects. Harry's prime suspect is Anthony Garland, the ex-boyfriend of the girl who lived in the corresponding apartment. The girl now lives in Texas and bears a resemblance to the missing Marie Gesto. Without any solid leads, evidence or a body, the department catalogues the case under unsolved.
Thirteen years later, police cops pull over Reynard Waits in his window-cleaning van late at night driving through Echo Park, a burgeoning location in LA County near Dodger stadium and Hollywood. The police accidentally discover the severed body parts of two prostitutes in bags and immediately arrest Waits. Eventually the prosecuting attorney running for election Rick O'Shea involves Harry and his Gesto case from thirteen years before. In order to avoid execution, Waits' lawyer brokers a deal in which Waits admits to murdering 9 people including Marie Gesto. In exchange for Waits' confession to the 9 murders, the state agrees to offer him life in prison instead of execution.
Harry is part of the Open-Unsolved Unit and won't give up his Gesto case without seeing it through. He's obsessed over it for some time now. O'Shea agrees to bring Harry on board, and they question Waits about the details of Gesto's murder. Waits answers all of Harry's questions adequately. A handcuffed Waits leads his lawyer and the prosecution team to Gesto's body on a field trip as the final confirmation before the prosecution team will accept Waits' confessions in exchange for life in prison. Harry is against offering Waits anything less than the needle but goes along to see his case through.
This is a mystery novel where the killer is revealed right away: 20 pages into the novel, in fact. There's more to the story obviously as politics within the police department and the upcoming election come into play. Lawyers and rich people always spin and skew public opinion, further confounding and frustrating Harry's efforts. The action is light while Harry slowly but steadily works through the clues and leads. A refreshing read in the midst of so many romances actually.
Michael Connelly's 2006 mystery ECHO PARK perpetuates many of the genre's themes though it still manages to intrigue and keep readers in suspense. You know a mystery novel will throw many curve balls at you, and you know oftentimes, the culprit is the last person you'd expect. In spite of all this, ECHO PARK still imparts interesting suspense. Michael Connelly writes a series of mystery novels on Police Detective Harry Bosch, and this is my first Connelly novel. It isn't bad, and very readable. Not a page-turner by any means, slow and steady best describes the pacing of this novel. The prose is average and the settings of Los Angeles and Echo Park fairly tame, relying on the names of real streets, neighborhoods and establishments to build the scene. The suspense keeps you interested but it isn't on-the-edge-of-your-seat kind of suspense. Like most mystery novels, I found the ending protracted and anticlimactic. There's a lot of politics in the novel as the book takes place during the fall election season. Two spots up for election directly affect our protagonist Harry: the position of District Attorney and a city council seat. Much of the politics was good as it posed and postured intriguing scenarios, making the read far from cut-and-dry. I liked that the villain here isn't all bad but definitely demented. Our villain Reynard Waits accurately characterizes Harry Bosch as an "eye-for-an-eye guy." Our protagonist Harry exhibits a cold, ruthless streak and I liked that as well.
The Premise.
In 1993, Detective Harry Bosch investigates the disappearance of Marie Gesto. After discovering her car in the exterior garage of High Tower apartments where many fledgling actors live, Harry has a bad feeling about the case. They find neatly folded clothes and groceries in her Honda Accord inside the garage, but they're never able to find the body or nail down any suspects. Harry's prime suspect is Anthony Garland, the ex-boyfriend of the girl who lived in the corresponding apartment. The girl now lives in Texas and bears a resemblance to the missing Marie Gesto. Without any solid leads, evidence or a body, the department catalogues the case under unsolved.
Thirteen years later, police cops pull over Reynard Waits in his window-cleaning van late at night driving through Echo Park, a burgeoning location in LA County near Dodger stadium and Hollywood. The police accidentally discover the severed body parts of two prostitutes in bags and immediately arrest Waits. Eventually the prosecuting attorney running for election Rick O'Shea involves Harry and his Gesto case from thirteen years before. In order to avoid execution, Waits' lawyer brokers a deal in which Waits admits to murdering 9 people including Marie Gesto. In exchange for Waits' confession to the 9 murders, the state agrees to offer him life in prison instead of execution.
Harry is part of the Open-Unsolved Unit and won't give up his Gesto case without seeing it through. He's obsessed over it for some time now. O'Shea agrees to bring Harry on board, and they question Waits about the details of Gesto's murder. Waits answers all of Harry's questions adequately. A handcuffed Waits leads his lawyer and the prosecution team to Gesto's body on a field trip as the final confirmation before the prosecution team will accept Waits' confessions in exchange for life in prison. Harry is against offering Waits anything less than the needle but goes along to see his case through.
This is a mystery novel where the killer is revealed right away: 20 pages into the novel, in fact. There's more to the story obviously as politics within the police department and the upcoming election come into play. Lawyers and rich people always spin and skew public opinion, further confounding and frustrating Harry's efforts. The action is light while Harry slowly but steadily works through the clues and leads. A refreshing read in the midst of so many romances actually.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Already Dead, by Charlie Huston [3]
***/***** (3/5)
"But I did get sloppy last night, and someone is gunna swing for it. So I'll fry a little to keep them happy and to keep myself alive. Because I don't want to die. Except, oh yeah, I'm already dead."
An interesting blend of gritty suspense, first-person detective thriller, and action in the context of a dark New York City (NYC) riddled with zombies, vampires and their socio-political hierarchies, Charlie Huston mixes a tangy cocktail punch in the form of ALREADY DEAD. There's a love mixed in as well, but true to guy fiction, it's a bit tragic and certainly not the primary focus of this novel. I liked the noir feel of ALREADY DEAD, I liked the fast-paced action, I enjoyed the dark NYC settings, I even liked the politics amongst the vampire (or "Vampyre") clans. The wry, sardonic humor our main character Joe Pitt exudes prompted some laughs. Charlie Huston's Joe Pitt reminded me of Richard Morgan's Takeshi Kovacs, but I liked Kovacs better. Charlie Huston's ALREADY DEAD hums with an impassioned detachment - if I can call it that - that stems from its main character Joe Pitt, and the book contains plenty of violence and explicit language. All of it builds the dark and gritty scene in an unsympathetic New York City nightlife crawling with vampyres, zombies and other creepy entities you don't want to meet in a dark alley.
A cool, fun book overall, I still found the final pieces of the mystery puzzle a bit lacking, a bit anti-climactic. Although I liked the anti-hero persona of Joe Pitt, I thought the book had him in a reactionary role throughout. From beginning to end, Joe Pitt is always reacting to the circumstances others have set in motion, never really dictating any of his own. I suppose that's part of what makes this book a mystery/suspense, but it'd be nice to see Joe setting something up for once. Even at the end when he retains Horde's teeth and ultimately evades the Coalition and Predo, I thought he lucked out rather than eliciting an outcome of his own making.
There's some memorable soliloquies and humorous lines in this novel. That in and of itself made the reading experience very worthwhile.
"Death has truly and finally arrived.
Good.
I have failed. Failed as a child; failed as a man; failed as a revolutionary; failed as a lover; failed as a goodguy. My only success in life has been as a pawn. Fuck it, I never asked to be any of those things. And my life was over by rights long ago. I've just been waiting to catch up to it. Then my heart explodes, beating a manic rhythm, and a I realize my life is not over.
Hell."
The Story, possible SPOILERS.
We pick up the story as rogue vampyre Joe Pitt eliminates some "shamblers" (zombies) which pose a threat to the underground Vampyre hierarchy by drawing undue attention. 6-foot-3 Joe Pitt looks 28, but he was was turned into a Vampyre some 30 years ago, and initiated into the vampyre clan the Society in New York City by his then-friend, Terry Bird. In Terry's clan the Society, Joe serves as the Society's de facto Enforcer, meting out the Society's justice and punishment. He leaves the Society though to live as a rogue vampyre, no longer wanting to play someone else's thug enforcer. Joe is very cynical and often times unapologetic over his brutal actions and prosaic immorality.
Joe settles into a life of a rogue vampyre after he leaves the Society. Sometimes he's hired for jobs by the Society, other times, he's hired for jobs by the biggest vampyre clan, the Coalition. The Coalition hires Joe to eliminate some zombies as the book begins, zombies he cuts down on Society's turf. After eliminating the zombies, Joe realizes he still needs to find and kill the carrier who is at large. Predo from the Coalition threatens agonizing death (sunlight) if Joe doesn't clean up the mess from the zombies Joe killed, a mess in which Joe leaves an innocent witness alive and the zombie corpses in plain sight.
It's Joe's soft spot for trying-to-do-the-right-thing which lands him into some trouble, and Predo from the Coalition exploits these good-guy tendencies, and stages events which ultimately position Joe between a rock and hard place. Predo further confounds Joe's problems as he obliges Joe to help the most wealthy family in NYC (and the closest thing NYC has to an aristocracy) find their missing 14 year-old girl, Amanda Horde. Dale Horde (CEO and founder of Horde Bio Tech) and his wife Marilee are seemingly at odds with each other and with Joe. Meanwhile, Terry and the Society are on Joe's case for all the unwanted events on their turf. The most powerful and also the most surreptitious Vampyre clan the Enclave also seems to have adopted Joe against his wishes.
Between trying to balance the different vampyre clans (Society, the Coalition, the Enclave), finding the zombie carrier, finding the Horde girl, Joe also struggles to maintain a semblance of normalcy with his HIV-positive girlfriend Evie. He loves Evie and Evie loves him but of course she knows nothing of what he really is; that is, his vampyre life.
Welcome to Charlie Huston's ALREADY DEAD, where the shit hits the fan, and Joe Pitt must solve some riddles and cope to survive with everyone breathing down his neck. Except, of course, he's already dead.
"So that's one more thing for me to deal with. I'd like [making up girlfreind] to be at the top of my list, but it's not. Instead my list reads something like this:
1) Find carrier.
2) Find Horde girl.
3) Find out who is spying on me.
4) Call Terry.
5) Deal with Predo.
6) Make up with girlfriend.
Oh, and at the top of that list you can add, GET SOME BLOOD."
The action is good, and I was glad the end refrained from a Matrix finale. However, I was disappointed by the reactionary elements in the storytelling and the various pieces of the mystery puzzle itself seemed empty once we learn everything. Still, there's some good kick-ass writing here, fast pacing, plenty of action and of course, a hard-nosed gritty first-person characterization to sate anyone's appetite.
"But I did get sloppy last night, and someone is gunna swing for it. So I'll fry a little to keep them happy and to keep myself alive. Because I don't want to die. Except, oh yeah, I'm already dead."
An interesting blend of gritty suspense, first-person detective thriller, and action in the context of a dark New York City (NYC) riddled with zombies, vampires and their socio-political hierarchies, Charlie Huston mixes a tangy cocktail punch in the form of ALREADY DEAD. There's a love mixed in as well, but true to guy fiction, it's a bit tragic and certainly not the primary focus of this novel. I liked the noir feel of ALREADY DEAD, I liked the fast-paced action, I enjoyed the dark NYC settings, I even liked the politics amongst the vampire (or "Vampyre") clans. The wry, sardonic humor our main character Joe Pitt exudes prompted some laughs. Charlie Huston's Joe Pitt reminded me of Richard Morgan's Takeshi Kovacs, but I liked Kovacs better. Charlie Huston's ALREADY DEAD hums with an impassioned detachment - if I can call it that - that stems from its main character Joe Pitt, and the book contains plenty of violence and explicit language. All of it builds the dark and gritty scene in an unsympathetic New York City nightlife crawling with vampyres, zombies and other creepy entities you don't want to meet in a dark alley.
A cool, fun book overall, I still found the final pieces of the mystery puzzle a bit lacking, a bit anti-climactic. Although I liked the anti-hero persona of Joe Pitt, I thought the book had him in a reactionary role throughout. From beginning to end, Joe Pitt is always reacting to the circumstances others have set in motion, never really dictating any of his own. I suppose that's part of what makes this book a mystery/suspense, but it'd be nice to see Joe setting something up for once. Even at the end when he retains Horde's teeth and ultimately evades the Coalition and Predo, I thought he lucked out rather than eliciting an outcome of his own making.
There's some memorable soliloquies and humorous lines in this novel. That in and of itself made the reading experience very worthwhile.
"Death has truly and finally arrived.
Good.
I have failed. Failed as a child; failed as a man; failed as a revolutionary; failed as a lover; failed as a goodguy. My only success in life has been as a pawn. Fuck it, I never asked to be any of those things. And my life was over by rights long ago. I've just been waiting to catch up to it. Then my heart explodes, beating a manic rhythm, and a I realize my life is not over.
Hell."
The Story, possible SPOILERS.
We pick up the story as rogue vampyre Joe Pitt eliminates some "shamblers" (zombies) which pose a threat to the underground Vampyre hierarchy by drawing undue attention. 6-foot-3 Joe Pitt looks 28, but he was was turned into a Vampyre some 30 years ago, and initiated into the vampyre clan the Society in New York City by his then-friend, Terry Bird. In Terry's clan the Society, Joe serves as the Society's de facto Enforcer, meting out the Society's justice and punishment. He leaves the Society though to live as a rogue vampyre, no longer wanting to play someone else's thug enforcer. Joe is very cynical and often times unapologetic over his brutal actions and prosaic immorality.
Joe settles into a life of a rogue vampyre after he leaves the Society. Sometimes he's hired for jobs by the Society, other times, he's hired for jobs by the biggest vampyre clan, the Coalition. The Coalition hires Joe to eliminate some zombies as the book begins, zombies he cuts down on Society's turf. After eliminating the zombies, Joe realizes he still needs to find and kill the carrier who is at large. Predo from the Coalition threatens agonizing death (sunlight) if Joe doesn't clean up the mess from the zombies Joe killed, a mess in which Joe leaves an innocent witness alive and the zombie corpses in plain sight.
It's Joe's soft spot for trying-to-do-the-right-thing which lands him into some trouble, and Predo from the Coalition exploits these good-guy tendencies, and stages events which ultimately position Joe between a rock and hard place. Predo further confounds Joe's problems as he obliges Joe to help the most wealthy family in NYC (and the closest thing NYC has to an aristocracy) find their missing 14 year-old girl, Amanda Horde. Dale Horde (CEO and founder of Horde Bio Tech) and his wife Marilee are seemingly at odds with each other and with Joe. Meanwhile, Terry and the Society are on Joe's case for all the unwanted events on their turf. The most powerful and also the most surreptitious Vampyre clan the Enclave also seems to have adopted Joe against his wishes.
Between trying to balance the different vampyre clans (Society, the Coalition, the Enclave), finding the zombie carrier, finding the Horde girl, Joe also struggles to maintain a semblance of normalcy with his HIV-positive girlfriend Evie. He loves Evie and Evie loves him but of course she knows nothing of what he really is; that is, his vampyre life.
Welcome to Charlie Huston's ALREADY DEAD, where the shit hits the fan, and Joe Pitt must solve some riddles and cope to survive with everyone breathing down his neck. Except, of course, he's already dead.
"So that's one more thing for me to deal with. I'd like [making up girlfreind] to be at the top of my list, but it's not. Instead my list reads something like this:
1) Find carrier.
2) Find Horde girl.
3) Find out who is spying on me.
4) Call Terry.
5) Deal with Predo.
6) Make up with girlfriend.
Oh, and at the top of that list you can add, GET SOME BLOOD."
The action is good, and I was glad the end refrained from a Matrix finale. However, I was disappointed by the reactionary elements in the storytelling and the various pieces of the mystery puzzle itself seemed empty once we learn everything. Still, there's some good kick-ass writing here, fast pacing, plenty of action and of course, a hard-nosed gritty first-person characterization to sate anyone's appetite.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Altered Carbon, by Richard Morgan [4]
****/***** (4/5)
In the relatively new genre dubbed as cyberpunk, British author Richard K. Morgan's first Takeshi Kovacs novel ALTERED CARBON (2002) leaves an indelible impression. A captivating blend of suspense/mystery, hardcore first-person detective story, and action/adventure in the midst of a science fiction backdrop, ALTERED CARBON is sure to hit you hard with its unique style and flavor. Morgan's Takeshi Kovacs is exactly the sort of kick-ass, intelligent hero I love to read about. Although I'm not a huge fan of first-person storytelling, our narrator Kovacs manages to admirably build the science fiction universe of ALTERED CARBON with its futuristic vocab and prose. ALTERED CARBON's settings, including the bureaucracy, economic social hierarchy, the vernacular, and futuristic sights are thorough, if not confounding at times. For a debut novel, Morgan ably sets the scene and builds his universe which support his story. There's plenty of related history too. Again, the prose can be ambiguous at times, but it depends on how you receive it; don't let the futuristic vernacular bog you down, just take it in stride. Richard Morgan doesn't shy away from explicit language, brutal violence and sex to grab your attention either. His science fiction world is very morbid, and these things are a part of its "culture."
In the futuristic ALTERED CARBON, human civilization conquers death itself. "Poor Death, no match for the mighty altered-carbon technologies of data storage and retrieval arrayed against him. Once we lived in terror of [Death's] arrival. Now we flirt outrageously with his somber dignity, and beings like these won't even let him in the tradesman's entrance." Ouch. But these things are a reality for the universe of ALTERED CARBON: cloning, mind data storage/retrieval, resleeving (brand new body or same body but younger). In a macabre observation, the book notes how virtual prostitution is actually more expensive than sex with a real prostitute, since bodies don't have much significance anymore. Many "Meths" (rich, influential people, socially and economically high on the food chain) have stacks on storage, and they transmit their current memory over regular intervals of time to a data center containing hundreds of their cloned bodies. "Meths" are often thousands of centuries old. Other, common people also have "stacks" for storage and retrieval in their spinal core, though they often don't have the monetary means to afford more than one clone, let alone hundreds. As the story begins, Morgan weaves in religion as we learn of religious Catholics demonstrating with placards against any form of data storage and retrieval on Earth, arguing such altered-carbon technology destroys the soul. In fact, many Catholics still live a traditional lifespan and forgo any form of cloning and resleeving in a new body.
Ex-U.N. Envoy (military conditioning and training) and criminal Takeshi Kovacs has just been hired by a Meth, Mr. Laurens Bancroft to investigate Bancroft's apparent suicide. The story begins as police commandos gun down Kovacs and his friend Sarah to death on Harlan's World. Next thing we know, authorities "needlecast" (transmit) Kovacs' "stack" (stored mind) over to Earth to be resleeved in a new body sanctioned and paid for by Bancroft. Bancraft is convinced it was a murder not a suicide, and he maintains he wouldn't try to kill himself when they'd download him to a new cloned body later anyway. Unfortunately, his last "update" to his personal data center was well before the events preceding his apparent suicide and now, he has no memory of his suicide or the time before it. Bancraft hires Kovacs on the strength of a recommendation by Reileen Kawahara, who Kovacs did some work for a few years back. The police and the ranking officer Lt. Kristin Ortega have already closed the case, declaring an open-and-shut suicide.
As Kovacs pursues the investigation, we learn more and more about the various pieces of the puzzle. If you're astute unlike me, you may be able to figure out some links well before the end. Kovacs investigates Bancroft's proclivity for blue-collar prostitution establishments like Jerry's Closed Quarters, he learns more about Bancroft's wife, the drop-dead gorgeous Miriam Bancroft, and even Kovacs' current "sleeve" (body) and its rightful consciousness currently stacked away seems to bear some disturbing connections to the leading police officer who closed Bancroft's case, the austere Lt. Ortega. Everyone except Bancroft himself wants Kovacs to leave well enough alone, and drop the investigation. The wild joy ride seems to intrigue Kovacs and he doggedly continues his investigation.
Morgan intersperses a lot of history and world-building into Kovacs' characterization. Although not as old as a Meth, Kovacs is an ex-Envoy and a few hundreds of years old himself with a rich and dark history. He often recalls gruesome wars, gritty experiences and brutal people he's met.
Here's just a taste of Kovacs' hardcore characterization. The following passages comes relatively early on in the book when there's a cold fury raging through his veins. It's actually a lot of fun. In a book Kovacs often quotes throughout, he notes: "And make no mistake about this: being taken seriously, being considered dangerous, marks the difference -- the only difference in their eyes -- between players and little people. Players they will make deals with. Little people they liquidate. And time and again they cream your liquidation, your displacement, your torture and brutal execution with the ultimate insult that it's just business, it's politics, it's the way of the world, it's a tough life, and that it's nothing personal. Well fuck them. Make it personal."
There's traces of love in the story, but don't hold your breath there, the book's focus rests on the hardcore first-person characterization of Takeshi Kovacs and the mystery he's hired to solve. What I like about the book: the nihilistic Kovacs' motivations behind his actions are very personal, drawn from a caring for the people he values. Nonetheless, Morgan explores some interesting themes here in the midst of his scifi world. In love, is it the body we love or the consciousness behind the body? Can you love a new consciousness in the body of your lover (Ortega/Kovacs/Ryker)? Can you love a new body with the consciousness of your love (Victor & Irene Elliot)? Is any of this cheating? It seems that a true long-term relationship hinges equally on both: the person behind the body and the body itself. And in Morgan's science fiction universe where bodies are interchanged as quickly as shirts, love is tricky.
My main criticism with this novel has to do with the prose. Because of the rich fabric of history and science fiction vernacular Morgan sprinkles into the first-person narrative, the prose takes some patience to follow, and if you don't really care for this brand of hardcore cyberpunk detective story, you're not going to like it. I dropped this novel in favor of others for months before I actually came back to finish this one. Having finished it, I will definitely continue reading other Takeshi Kovacs novels.
It's an interesting ride to say the least.
In the relatively new genre dubbed as cyberpunk, British author Richard K. Morgan's first Takeshi Kovacs novel ALTERED CARBON (2002) leaves an indelible impression. A captivating blend of suspense/mystery, hardcore first-person detective story, and action/adventure in the midst of a science fiction backdrop, ALTERED CARBON is sure to hit you hard with its unique style and flavor. Morgan's Takeshi Kovacs is exactly the sort of kick-ass, intelligent hero I love to read about. Although I'm not a huge fan of first-person storytelling, our narrator Kovacs manages to admirably build the science fiction universe of ALTERED CARBON with its futuristic vocab and prose. ALTERED CARBON's settings, including the bureaucracy, economic social hierarchy, the vernacular, and futuristic sights are thorough, if not confounding at times. For a debut novel, Morgan ably sets the scene and builds his universe which support his story. There's plenty of related history too. Again, the prose can be ambiguous at times, but it depends on how you receive it; don't let the futuristic vernacular bog you down, just take it in stride. Richard Morgan doesn't shy away from explicit language, brutal violence and sex to grab your attention either. His science fiction world is very morbid, and these things are a part of its "culture."
In the futuristic ALTERED CARBON, human civilization conquers death itself. "Poor Death, no match for the mighty altered-carbon technologies of data storage and retrieval arrayed against him. Once we lived in terror of [Death's] arrival. Now we flirt outrageously with his somber dignity, and beings like these won't even let him in the tradesman's entrance." Ouch. But these things are a reality for the universe of ALTERED CARBON: cloning, mind data storage/retrieval, resleeving (brand new body or same body but younger). In a macabre observation, the book notes how virtual prostitution is actually more expensive than sex with a real prostitute, since bodies don't have much significance anymore. Many "Meths" (rich, influential people, socially and economically high on the food chain) have stacks on storage, and they transmit their current memory over regular intervals of time to a data center containing hundreds of their cloned bodies. "Meths" are often thousands of centuries old. Other, common people also have "stacks" for storage and retrieval in their spinal core, though they often don't have the monetary means to afford more than one clone, let alone hundreds. As the story begins, Morgan weaves in religion as we learn of religious Catholics demonstrating with placards against any form of data storage and retrieval on Earth, arguing such altered-carbon technology destroys the soul. In fact, many Catholics still live a traditional lifespan and forgo any form of cloning and resleeving in a new body.
Ex-U.N. Envoy (military conditioning and training) and criminal Takeshi Kovacs has just been hired by a Meth, Mr. Laurens Bancroft to investigate Bancroft's apparent suicide. The story begins as police commandos gun down Kovacs and his friend Sarah to death on Harlan's World. Next thing we know, authorities "needlecast" (transmit) Kovacs' "stack" (stored mind) over to Earth to be resleeved in a new body sanctioned and paid for by Bancroft. Bancraft is convinced it was a murder not a suicide, and he maintains he wouldn't try to kill himself when they'd download him to a new cloned body later anyway. Unfortunately, his last "update" to his personal data center was well before the events preceding his apparent suicide and now, he has no memory of his suicide or the time before it. Bancraft hires Kovacs on the strength of a recommendation by Reileen Kawahara, who Kovacs did some work for a few years back. The police and the ranking officer Lt. Kristin Ortega have already closed the case, declaring an open-and-shut suicide.
As Kovacs pursues the investigation, we learn more and more about the various pieces of the puzzle. If you're astute unlike me, you may be able to figure out some links well before the end. Kovacs investigates Bancroft's proclivity for blue-collar prostitution establishments like Jerry's Closed Quarters, he learns more about Bancroft's wife, the drop-dead gorgeous Miriam Bancroft, and even Kovacs' current "sleeve" (body) and its rightful consciousness currently stacked away seems to bear some disturbing connections to the leading police officer who closed Bancroft's case, the austere Lt. Ortega. Everyone except Bancroft himself wants Kovacs to leave well enough alone, and drop the investigation. The wild joy ride seems to intrigue Kovacs and he doggedly continues his investigation.
Morgan intersperses a lot of history and world-building into Kovacs' characterization. Although not as old as a Meth, Kovacs is an ex-Envoy and a few hundreds of years old himself with a rich and dark history. He often recalls gruesome wars, gritty experiences and brutal people he's met.
Here's just a taste of Kovacs' hardcore characterization. The following passages comes relatively early on in the book when there's a cold fury raging through his veins. It's actually a lot of fun. In a book Kovacs often quotes throughout, he notes: "And make no mistake about this: being taken seriously, being considered dangerous, marks the difference -- the only difference in their eyes -- between players and little people. Players they will make deals with. Little people they liquidate. And time and again they cream your liquidation, your displacement, your torture and brutal execution with the ultimate insult that it's just business, it's politics, it's the way of the world, it's a tough life, and that it's nothing personal. Well fuck them. Make it personal."
There's traces of love in the story, but don't hold your breath there, the book's focus rests on the hardcore first-person characterization of Takeshi Kovacs and the mystery he's hired to solve. What I like about the book: the nihilistic Kovacs' motivations behind his actions are very personal, drawn from a caring for the people he values. Nonetheless, Morgan explores some interesting themes here in the midst of his scifi world. In love, is it the body we love or the consciousness behind the body? Can you love a new consciousness in the body of your lover (Ortega/Kovacs/Ryker)? Can you love a new body with the consciousness of your love (Victor & Irene Elliot)? Is any of this cheating? It seems that a true long-term relationship hinges equally on both: the person behind the body and the body itself. And in Morgan's science fiction universe where bodies are interchanged as quickly as shirts, love is tricky.
My main criticism with this novel has to do with the prose. Because of the rich fabric of history and science fiction vernacular Morgan sprinkles into the first-person narrative, the prose takes some patience to follow, and if you don't really care for this brand of hardcore cyberpunk detective story, you're not going to like it. I dropped this novel in favor of others for months before I actually came back to finish this one. Having finished it, I will definitely continue reading other Takeshi Kovacs novels.
It's an interesting ride to say the least.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Into the Fire, by Anne Stuart [4]
****/***** (4/5)
There's too many things to like about Anne Stuart's INTO THE FIRE. In my continuing quest for a fusion between romance and other genres, this particular one blurs the lines of distinction between contemporary romance, suspense and mystery, though it's still a romance at heart. I thought INTO THE FIRE does a very decent job in all of these genres and yet still manages to pull off a world unto its own. Aside from the contemporary world, the novel seemed to breath a new world within the garage building in remote Cooperstown, Wisconsin (U.S.), where most of the novel takes place. It was surreal, yet grounded. The settings -- though good -- I thought could have been better if Anne Stuart spent even more time than she already did describing the decrepit garage building. As it is, the inanimate garage building still came alive. The prose isn't bad at all, and the characterizations were excellent with ample backstories and well-realized. Especially Bad-Boy Dillon Gaynor. The romance was very passionate, electrically charged. Anne Stuart even made me laugh as she sprinkles in some witty dialogue.
I've heard you haven't read bad boys until you've read Anne Stuart's bad boys. Within the context of the romance genre, I would have to agree. Although INTO THE FIRE's Dillon is a convicted felon, a high-school dropout, a drunk, a drug dealer, and an all-around insensitive jerk, he still manages to capture our good-girl heroine Jamie Kincaid's attentions, and later, her heart. You have to hand it to Anne Stuart for getting bad boys right, and still have the reader find them endearing, at least on some level. I've also heard Anne Stuart redeems her heroes fully by the end and such is the case here as well because bad-boy Dillon doesn't have the most noble, gentlemanly intentions towards his heroine Jamie starting out.
Jamie signifies courage during very trying circumstances and a spunky wit on her own right, and in that regard, her character pretty much golfs par for romance. What I found funny though: she drives all the way from her home in Rhode Island to Dillon's car garage in Wisconsin for some answers only to find herself wanting to flee Dillon -- constantly. Classic case of a heroine's nerves and instincts guarding her falling heart, but I thought it was funny here, and unique in the midst of the eerie, suspenseful car garage building. For those of you that are a bit squeamish (I myself can't take S&M), I must warn of a rape scene in the beginning. It's part of Jamie's flashback, and I thought it was important in two respects: it showed Jamie's strength of character and it signified in the overall love story and passion between Jamie and Dillon.
My problems?
Well for one, I thought the book contained too many plot holes. I didn't mind that it often bordered on paranormal elements, but it didn't provide a reasonable explanation for the happenings in Dillon's car garage at the end. Either make it paranormal or provide me with some reasonable explanations please.
And secondly, this is getting back to my need for some satisfactory ending - not necessarily happy 100%, but satisfactory nonetheless. I didn't like how the ending didn't spend enough time between its hero and heroine, Jaime and Dillon. It also felt contrived and rushed.
Finally, I felt Dillon was reformed too easily, and all the criminal charges against him absolved too conveniently. Could be related to my problem with plot holes.
The premise (spoiler-free).
Twenty-eight year-old school teacher Jaime Kincaid has just lost her beloved cousin Nate to death. Tall, dark and handsome, Nate possessed a beguiling smile and a comforting, easy presence. Nate and Dillon Gaynor have been best friends forever and Nate was found bludgeoned to death in his best friend's car garage. Jaime fears thirty year-old Dillon for many reasons: she's had a crush on Dillon since she was 15, Dillon's James-Dean, Rebel-Without-a-Cause persona infringes on her deepest, darkest desires, and he's violent in the worst ways having served jail time for almost beating someone to death when he was 19. Yet, Jaime treks out there in her Volvo for some answers and Nate's belongings since Dillon ignores her letters. The police have dropped Nate's case and Jaime is determined to get some answers.
As she arrives at Dillon's eerie car garage, she's horrified to watch Dillon beating someone up. Nope, Jaime thinks, he hasn't changed at all.
Bad-Boy Dillon Gaynor has his own reasons for intentionally withholding Nate's belongings and hoping to see Jaime again in person after 12 years. They aren't the most noble reasons either, he just wants to use her for his own satisfaction. As soon as Jaime arrives, she wants to escape, to return to Rhode Island while Dillon treacherously sabotages her means to return. He effectively imprisons her in his creepy, dilapidated car garage building.
The story continues its wild ride from there as good-girl Jaime and bad-boy Dillon struggle with ghosts from their past and with each other.
A very engaging reading experience, and it had me completely hooked from beginning to end.
There's too many things to like about Anne Stuart's INTO THE FIRE. In my continuing quest for a fusion between romance and other genres, this particular one blurs the lines of distinction between contemporary romance, suspense and mystery, though it's still a romance at heart. I thought INTO THE FIRE does a very decent job in all of these genres and yet still manages to pull off a world unto its own. Aside from the contemporary world, the novel seemed to breath a new world within the garage building in remote Cooperstown, Wisconsin (U.S.), where most of the novel takes place. It was surreal, yet grounded. The settings -- though good -- I thought could have been better if Anne Stuart spent even more time than she already did describing the decrepit garage building. As it is, the inanimate garage building still came alive. The prose isn't bad at all, and the characterizations were excellent with ample backstories and well-realized. Especially Bad-Boy Dillon Gaynor. The romance was very passionate, electrically charged. Anne Stuart even made me laugh as she sprinkles in some witty dialogue.
I've heard you haven't read bad boys until you've read Anne Stuart's bad boys. Within the context of the romance genre, I would have to agree. Although INTO THE FIRE's Dillon is a convicted felon, a high-school dropout, a drunk, a drug dealer, and an all-around insensitive jerk, he still manages to capture our good-girl heroine Jamie Kincaid's attentions, and later, her heart. You have to hand it to Anne Stuart for getting bad boys right, and still have the reader find them endearing, at least on some level. I've also heard Anne Stuart redeems her heroes fully by the end and such is the case here as well because bad-boy Dillon doesn't have the most noble, gentlemanly intentions towards his heroine Jamie starting out.
Jamie signifies courage during very trying circumstances and a spunky wit on her own right, and in that regard, her character pretty much golfs par for romance. What I found funny though: she drives all the way from her home in Rhode Island to Dillon's car garage in Wisconsin for some answers only to find herself wanting to flee Dillon -- constantly. Classic case of a heroine's nerves and instincts guarding her falling heart, but I thought it was funny here, and unique in the midst of the eerie, suspenseful car garage building. For those of you that are a bit squeamish (I myself can't take S&M), I must warn of a rape scene in the beginning. It's part of Jamie's flashback, and I thought it was important in two respects: it showed Jamie's strength of character and it signified in the overall love story and passion between Jamie and Dillon.
My problems?
Well for one, I thought the book contained too many plot holes. I didn't mind that it often bordered on paranormal elements, but it didn't provide a reasonable explanation for the happenings in Dillon's car garage at the end. Either make it paranormal or provide me with some reasonable explanations please.
And secondly, this is getting back to my need for some satisfactory ending - not necessarily happy 100%, but satisfactory nonetheless. I didn't like how the ending didn't spend enough time between its hero and heroine, Jaime and Dillon. It also felt contrived and rushed.
Finally, I felt Dillon was reformed too easily, and all the criminal charges against him absolved too conveniently. Could be related to my problem with plot holes.
The premise (spoiler-free).
Twenty-eight year-old school teacher Jaime Kincaid has just lost her beloved cousin Nate to death. Tall, dark and handsome, Nate possessed a beguiling smile and a comforting, easy presence. Nate and Dillon Gaynor have been best friends forever and Nate was found bludgeoned to death in his best friend's car garage. Jaime fears thirty year-old Dillon for many reasons: she's had a crush on Dillon since she was 15, Dillon's James-Dean, Rebel-Without-a-Cause persona infringes on her deepest, darkest desires, and he's violent in the worst ways having served jail time for almost beating someone to death when he was 19. Yet, Jaime treks out there in her Volvo for some answers and Nate's belongings since Dillon ignores her letters. The police have dropped Nate's case and Jaime is determined to get some answers.
As she arrives at Dillon's eerie car garage, she's horrified to watch Dillon beating someone up. Nope, Jaime thinks, he hasn't changed at all.
Bad-Boy Dillon Gaynor has his own reasons for intentionally withholding Nate's belongings and hoping to see Jaime again in person after 12 years. They aren't the most noble reasons either, he just wants to use her for his own satisfaction. As soon as Jaime arrives, she wants to escape, to return to Rhode Island while Dillon treacherously sabotages her means to return. He effectively imprisons her in his creepy, dilapidated car garage building.
The story continues its wild ride from there as good-girl Jaime and bad-boy Dillon struggle with ghosts from their past and with each other.
A very engaging reading experience, and it had me completely hooked from beginning to end.
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